Malaysian fisherman wishes to return home soon

SEPANG: A fisherman from Sekinchan, Selangor, who was sentenced to jail in Indonesia, hoped to be able to return home soon to welcome the Chinese New Year with his family in February.
Chia Kee Chan, 49, is currently serving his jail term of two years and four months in the Labuhan Deli Prison, Medan, Indonesia, for trespassing the Indonesian waters.
This was disclosed by Sungai Besar Member of Parliament Budiman Mohd Zohdi when met at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (klia2) here today.
Budiman had just arrived at the klia2 with Chia's wife, Yeo Su Hung, 46, and the couple's youngest son, Chia Ming Siang, 15, whom he brought along to meet Chia this morning.
He hoped that the Malaysian and Indonesian governments would speed up negotiations to free the fishermen from both countries who had been detained for trespassing.
Budiman said that Chia, also a father of four, was arrested by Indonesian authorities on Feb 19, 2016, and subsequently sentenced to imprisonment on April 15, 2016.
Chia, who was scheduled to be released in April 2018, had expressed his wish to return home as soon as possible due to his mother's health, he said.
Last month, Malaysia and Indonesia have agreed to release immediately all the fishermen arrested by either country for trespassing in each other's waters.
The understanding was reached between Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the 12th Malaysia-Indonesia Annual Leaders' Consultation in Kuching recently. — Bernama